The reason I'm speaking about this now is that I've been a little out of touch with Collard's carreer, and recent comments on his amazing performance at the Sydney Harp Festival in early december prompted me to explore again. Apparently, his trio has released a third album (besides the one mentioned here, and the follow-up More Gravy) and is working on a fourth. Besides, Ian has a myspace site under his own name Ian Collard as well as one under the band's name Collard Greens and Gravy. Jump there if you want to hear the Gravy's special brand of raw blues.
Collard Greens & Gravy is a trio (and before you ask, no, Ian Collard's colleagues are not called Greens and Gravy !) Ian is on vocals and harmonica (mostly amplified, but a few acoustic tracks), James Bridges on guitar (and slide guitar) and Anthony Shortte on drums and percussions.
The thing that strikes me about this release is that, unlike a great majority of records issued (in the blues genre or otherwise), it has a genuine feel, an atmosphere that pervades the whole record. In other words, when you play that record, it's very difficult to listen to it analytically. It is a very dark and haunting record, it has a kind of mean edge to it, not unlike some of the eeriest Robert Johnson stuff, although using different tools.
This is the result of an unusual repertoire and unusual arrangements, as well as an obvious work of the sound engineers to get that very special feeling. There's a lot of silence, a lot of notes hanging in the air rather than being smothered by the next note, there's haunting echo, and there's sparse drumming and guitar when needed.
The closest thing I have on record in terms of atmosphere would be low rock bands like Morphine or its harp-enabled ancestor Treat her Right. I don't know if the term low blues has been coined yet, but if not, Ian and his colleagues have maybe brought upon a new genre...
Ian's playing is mature and well mastered, featuring both speed and power when required and gentle somberness on darker tracks. At times, it reminds me a little of Steve Guyger's playing on Past Life although it's not as traditional. Ian uses overblows (especially the minor third on overblow six) to great effect even though it is sometimes slightly out of tune. I hard a hard time working out if that was deliberate or not, since it has a certain unsettling effect that is in fact quite pleasant.
In terms of repertoire, even though there are a few covers here, most of them are of obscure pre-war recordings, apart from St James Infirmary. Nothing you're likely to have heard if your interests don't lie specifically in that direction. Covers and originals alike are fully the band's own though, and have been reinterpreted with great arrangements. It is quite uncanny how low James' guitar sounds in the absence of a bass. Anthony's drumming has a primitive feel to it, as featured on the solo in Out in the desert that sounds positively tribal.
Moments of greatness are aplenty in this record, my personal favourite being the interpretation of Get Right Church, very moody, and featuring a long unaccompanied harp solo of great facture. The aforementioned Out in the Desert is also a nice piece of work, as is the funeral sounding Sick Bed Blues, with Ian singing falsetto and playing chromatic harp.
All in all, Collard Greens and Gravy is undoubtedly one of the most original and enjoyable blues releases I have heard in quite a while. It may not be suited to all tastes, since it has a somber edge and is not the kind of blues that will bring a happy smile to your face. It is more expressive and meaningful than a lot of stuff that gets released these days though. I can only recommend blues fans out there to check out the band's myspace site and purchase the album if you like it. Chances are you will !
Since writing that review, my listening has evolved, and I recognize the filiation with RL Burnside and Junior Kimbrough's raw blues, although I still believe there's a post-rock side to this album that makes it unique. In the harmonica world, Jason Ricci stems from similar roots but approaches the rawness very differently : where Collard Greens and Gravy produces a sparse, haunting sound, Jason approaches rawness in a loud and boisterous way.
Back then, I also reviewed Collard Greens and Gravy's second album which didn't sound quite as exciting to my ears. Here is what I wrote at the time :
Collard Greens and Gravy are a bunch of guys who are reviving blues in the Australian Outback. Figuratively of course. I really loved their debut, self-titled album and I must confess that, despite its evident qualities, a strong drive, a sound as dark and raucous as ever and tasteful musicians, I didn't enjoy More Gravy as much. Not that it's a bad album, far from it! But it doesn't have as much space around the music as the previous one did, and is less intelligently structured: the first eight tracks are fast, rugged amplified pieces and don't let you breathe for a second. Only on track nine (Gonna wait 'til a change come) do you hear an acoustic harp and on the track after that, you can finally relax on a slow tune (a vocal and harp solo bit in the grand tradition of Sonny Boy Williamson 2 and Sugar Blue.) The end of the album is quite different in spirit and atmosphere, and allows the listener a little more breathing space. The final track Goin' home is quite superb and proves if need be that the (small) defects of this album are more due to production issues than they are to the talent and inspiration of the band, which remain intact.
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